Best Buddies International and i4cp Form Strategic Partnership

Seattle, WA (February 28, 2013)—The Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp), a research organization that focuses on the people practices that make high-performance organizations unique, has formed a strategic partnership with Best Buddies International, a nonprofit organization that provides opportunities for one-to-one friendship, integrated employment and leadership development to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

The strategic partnership between i4cp and Best Buddies will initially focus on a research study into the opportunities of employment and leadership development for people with IDD. The study, to be conducted in the next few months, will explore how organizations are benefiting from employing those with IDD and integrating them into the workforce. It will also specifically focus on which job roles have seen the greatest impact by hiring people with IDD and seek to determine other potential opportunities for people with disabilities. Findings from the study, to be released later in 2013, will be shared with i4cp members as well as Best Buddies sponsors and volunteers.

“We truly appreciate all of i4cp’s support and look forward to working with them across the country,” said Anthony K. Shriver, Founder and Chairman, Best Buddies International. “As a result of our partnership, we hope to create more opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.”

"I am excited to work with Best Buddies to really understand how high-performing organizations are developing employment opportunities for people with IDD," said Kevin Oakes, CEO of i4cp. "Best Buddies is a ground-breaking nonprofit doing extremely important work, with an incredibly enthusiastic staff and large, well-known group of volunteers. Several of our staff members are actively involved with the organization already and we look forward to working more closely with Best Buddies in the future."

i4cp will also host a special Best Buddies Friendship Walk at its upcoming 2013 Annual Conference, to raise proceeds for the organization as well as introduce conference attendees to the value Best Buddies offers. The conference will be held March 18 - 22, 2013, in Scottsdale, Arizona.

About Best Buddies

Best Buddies® is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Founded in 1989 by Anthony K. Shriver, Best Buddies is a vibrant organization that has grown from one original chapter to almost 1,500 middle school, high school, and college chapters worldwide. Today, Best Buddies’ eight formal programs—Middle Schools, High Schools, Colleges, Citizens, e-Buddies® , Jobs, Ambassadors, and Promoters—engage participants in each of the 50 states and in 50 countries, positively impacting the lives of nearly 700,000 people with and without disabilities around the world. As a result of their involvement with Best Buddies, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities secure rewarding jobs, live on their own, become inspirational leaders, and make lifelong friendships. For more information, please visit www.bestbuddies.org, facebook.com/bestbuddies or twitter.com/bestbuddies.

About i4cp

i4cp focuses on the people practices that make high-performance organizations unique. Years of research make it clear that top companies approach their workforces differently. In recognition of our status as the largest and fastest-growing network of its kind, i4cp was named to the prestigious 2012 Inc. 500|5000 list. We work with our network of organizations to:

• Reveal what high-performance organizations are doing differently
• Identify best and next practices for all levels of management
• Provide the resources to show how workforce improvements have bottom-line impact

Through our exclusive, vendor-free network―in which peers collaborate to drive strategic research, as well as share tools and insights—i4cp provides a unique, practical view of how human capital practices drive high performance. For more information, visit http://www.i4cp.com/